DE 199 09 242 A1 discloses an optoelectronic module in which a leadframe with an optoelectronic transducer is positioned in a module housing and potted with a light-transmissive, moldable material. Light is coupled in or out via an optical fiber coupled to a connector of the module housing. The driver module or reception module for the optoelectronic transducer is also situated on the leadframe.
Furthermore, optoelectronic transmission and reception arrangements are known in which the electro-optical or optoelectronic transducers and also the associated circuitry modules (driver module or reception amplifier module) are mounted on a transceiver circuit board. In this case, the individual circuit boards may be arranged closely spaced apart from one another in a rack. An optical fiber is coupled parallel to the transceiver circuit board. For this purpose, the contact legs of the respective transducer module are bent through 90° and mounted on the transceiver circuit board for example using THT technology (through hole technology).
A corresponding arrangement in accordance with the prior art is illustrated in FIG. 5. An optical unit 100 and also associated active and/or passive electrical components 130 are arranged on a circuit board 120. The optical unit 100 is an electro-optical or optoelectrical transducer such as a laser diode, a photodiode or an LED. For the coupling of an optical fiber, provision is made of a plug receptacle 110 arranged in parallel orientation with respect to the circuit board 120, so that an optical waveguide is plugged in parallel to the circuit board 120. The optical unit 100 receives or transmits light likewise in a direction parallel to the circuit board 120, so that it is possible to effect direct coupling to an optical waveguide inserted into the plug receptacle 110.
The small connecting legs (leads) 101 of the optical unit 100 are bent through 90° and mounted on the printed circuit board 120 for example using THT technology. FIG. 5 furthermore illustrates an interface 40 for radio-frequency electrical signals.
In known modifications of the prior art illustrated in FIG. 5, the optical unit 100 is contact-connected to the transceiver circuit board 120 by means of a flexboard, that is to say by means of a flexible structure containing patterned conductor tracks. The flexboard is electrically connected to the optical unit 100, on the one hand, and is electrically connected to the circuit board 120, on the other hand. In a further configuration, the optical unit 100 is soldered in a direction parallel to the circuit board plane directly onto the latter.
There is a need for optoelectronic transmission and/or reception arrangements in which the transmission components of reception components can be arranged in surface-mountable devices (SMD—Surface Mounted Device) and can correspondingly be mounted on a printed circuit board in a simple manner using the standards of SMD technology. The known arrangements are not suitable for this.
When the optoelectronic components are arranged in SMD devices, it must be taken into consideration that the optical axes are typically arranged perpendicular or approximately perpendicular to the device plane. Therefore, when an SMD device is arranged on a transceiver circuit board, there is the problem of either deflecting through 90° the beam path of an optical fiber that is coupled parallel to the circuit board or rotating the device through 90° by means of an auxiliary construction.
Furthermore, in the case of solutions with SMD devices, it must be taken into consideration that the precise joining of the receptacle represents a considerable cost factor. Since a receptacle, depending on its embodiment, also has to completely or partially transfer mechanical forces, it is necessary for the receptacle to be solidly mechanically anchored in the housing or in the main circuit board (motherboard). In this case, it must be ensured that mechanical forces that occur do not influence or even destroy the optical coupling between optical unit and receptacle.